I was asked twice in the days leading up to Senator John McCain’s selection of his running mate who I thought he would pick. I had two answers – who I thought he would pick and who I wanted him to pick. With today’s announcement, I’m happy to say he went with who I wanted him to pick.  I’m a big fan of Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska and what she brings to a Republican Party desperately in need of fresh faces and an injection of youth and vitality.

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The Democratic National Convention started tonight with a bang. Senator Ted Kennedy arose from his sick bed, where he’s battling brain cancer, and flew to Denver to pass the mantle of Democratic Party moral leadership from the Kennedys to Barack Obama. As if his presence wasn’t enough, his niece, Caroline Kennedy, introduced him and described him as one of two men who inspire her, the other of course being Barack Obama. I wonder if the Clintons, who did have a modestly successful eight-year stint not too long ago, felt slighted that the Kennedy blessing went right past them to the upstart Senator from Illinois? Jacob and Esau have nothing on this “family” drama! Later on, Michelle Obama got up to introduce herself to the American people as a devoted wife, a doting mother and a woman who loves America, in part to counter her misstatement during the campaign about being proud of her country “for the first time in my adult life…” I don’t doubt her patriotism but there are a lot of folks out there who probably already have their minds made up and she could wrap herself in the American flag and sing the Star-Spangled Banner and it wouldn’t make a difference to them.

From the account I just gave, you’d think I was watching the convention breathlessly on television this evening. In fact, anyone who’s a card carrying political junkie ought to be watching, right? Well, I’m sorry to disappoint, but I was watching the Seahawks and Chargers in a preseason football game. Everything I recounted for you about the convention is based on what I read online with a few of my personal thoughts thrown in for good measure.

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We’re now fully into what pundits like to call the “silly season” of the 2008 Presidential campaign where the candidates sound more like bickering children than potential leaders of the most powerful nation on earth:

Obama: “McCain’s making fun of my name and says I don’t look like the other kids!”
McCain: “I did no such thing – liar, liar, pants on fire! Hey, why does he get more face time than me? Who does he think he is – Paris Hilton? Teacher’s pet!”

As a result, I felt that Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Church, he of the famed book “The Purpose-Driven Life,” did the nation a great service with the Saddleback Civil Forum on August 16th featuring the two candidates. In my opinion, the format of the forum and the nature of the questions asked did more to help voters take the true measure of these men than any other event to date. These are my personal observations based on their presentations that night. I sincerely hope the forum and the numerous post-mortems of its outcome, including this one, might help people make what ought to be a serious decision come November.

First of all, let me say that despite the despair some people feel over the choices put before them, I believe we have two extraordinary gentlemen on the ballot. There are aspects of both men that I found compelling and attractive. In fact, if I could pick and choose character traits and experience from both men, I could create the perfect presidential candidate! My uncensored personal impressions follow. (more…)

An interesting report came out this week from Development Counsellors International (DCI), a company specializing in economic development and tourism marketing. They surveyed 3,591 U.S. companies with annual revenues of $25 million or more, targeting “C-level” executives with responsibility for selecting business sites, and 944 location advisors/consultants. This survey has been done every three years since 1996 and gives corporate executives the pulse of the business community when it comes to their perception of which locations have the most favorable business climates.  The state with the most favorable business climate was Texas, followed by North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee and Florida in a tie, and Nevada. Texas, North Carolina and Georgia have consistently been in the top five. Who’s at the bottom? For the third consecutive time in the survey, California was at the bottom, with New York second worst, Michigan third worst, New Jersey fourth worst and Massachusetts fifth worst. The states rated at the top were cited for strong labor markets, low operating costs and a pro-business climate. The states at the bottom were viewed negatively because of taxes, high operating costs, overregulation and an anti-business climate.

There’s an even more interesting story behind the story, however. Steven Malanga of the Manhattan Institute took a closer look at the best and worst states for doing business and found that $33 billion of the approximately $48 billion in accumulated budget shortfalls of the 29 states with projected deficits was concentrated in the five states considered by corporate executives to be the least friendly to business. In short, two-thirds of the red ink at the state level resides in the five “anti-business” states.

What about the “pro-business” states? Texas and North Carolina have no budget deficits, and Georgia, Florida and Tennessee have shortfalls totalling about $4.1 billion, less than one-tenth of the accumulated total. Mr. Malanga notes that while these facts should give state legislators pause and spur a reevaluation of their economic policies, the exact opposite seems to be happening. New York is pushing for a new tax on millionaires – hmmm, where have I heard that before? – and California is looking to boost its top income tax rate from 9.3 percent to 11 percent.

Is there a lesson in these numbers for Maryland? Well, that depends on whether or not the one-party monopoly in Annapolis is in a learning mode.

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This year’s race for the Presidency may be close and contentious, but it’s over for me personally. You see, I made up my mind a long time ago and I only needed a limited amount of verifiable information to make my decision. Oh, sure, I’ll pay attention to the rest of the campaign. Objectively speaking, this is an historic race that will be fascinating to watch. America is on the verge of electing a black President for the first time in its 232-year history. This is also the first election in 80 years in which a sitting President or Vice-President isn’t running, so the next administration will truly represent change, no matter which candidate gets elected.  I’ll even work for the candidate of my choice because I believe in political activism and the electoral process. As far as my vote is concerned, however, it’s signed, sealed and delivered. You see, there is an issue which for me is non-negotiable and you cannot spin it, soft-pedal it or make it more palatable with lofty words or calls for unity of purpose. That issue is abortion.

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